The photo shows the guided-missile destroyer Baotou (Hull 133) attached to the 47th Chinese naval escort taskforce escorting a merchant ship in the Gulf of Aden. (Photo by Wang Ningchuan)
By Gao Dezheng and Ren Ke
GULF OF ADEN, Feb. 6 -- Early in the morning on Tuesday, the 47th Chinese naval escort taskforce completed its 1,658th escort task, safely escorting a merchant ship "Tianqi" to the designated waters. When they departed, the merchant ship expressed gratitude to the taskforce by radio.
The 47th Chinese naval escort taskforce received the escort request from the merchant ship "Tianqi" right before the Spring Festival, Chinese traditional Lunar New Year. The taskforce decided to dispatch the guided-missile frigate Honghe (Hull 523) to escort the ship. Meanwhile, the guided-missile destroyer Baotou (Hull 133) attached to the taskforce escorted three other merchant ships "Tianle", "Xiangruikou" and "Ruyisong" through the Gulf of Aden.
On the morning of February 1, two suspected pirate dinghies suddenly appeared near the merchant ship "Ruyisong". After a series of warning and deterrence actions, the suspected pirate dinghies were driven away by the destroyer Baotou.